1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a multi-use belt and ball holder that may be used by golfers.
2. Description of Related Art
Sport belts, belts that are used in sporting activities, are well known in the art. Examples of sports belts can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,427 issued to McManus and U.S. Pat. No. 5,240,156 issued to Sicotte et al. These devices provide a belt with holders for carrying sporting equipment, such as balls or water bottles. Equipment holders for holding objects during a sporting activity are known in the art. Examples of these devices can be found in Japanese patent number 5-329239 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,610,344 issued to Williams, 2,558,382 issued to Previdi, 2,708,061 issued to Kotchka, 3,753,519 issued to Gammon, 4,061,256 to Beer et al., 4,065,040 issued to Steere, 4,069,954 issued to Rauch, 4,129,237 issued to Grinder, and 5,517,696 issued to Krugler.
However, it has been found that these devices do not adequately meet the needs of most golfers. In the game of golf, the swing is the most important aspect of a player's game. If a player cannot execute a proper swing, the player cannot achieve a good score. To this end, it is important that the player not be distracted by objects placed on the player's body and that such objects do not interfere with the motion of the player's swing. Yet equipment holders in the prior art are distracting to golfers and interfere with golf swings. Equipment holders such as those found in Williams, Previdi, and Gammon are not firmly attached to the golfer but hang from a point on the golfer thereby allowing relative movement between the equipment holder and the golfer. This allows the holders and equipment to swing in a pendulous motion. Other holders, such as those found in Beer et al., Rauch, and Krugler, attach to extremities of the golfer, consequently shifting the golfer's center of mass and disturbing the golfer's balance. Finally, other devices, such as Kotchka, Steere, and Grinder have a taller vertical height than most belts and poke the user when the user swings a golf club or bends to pick up a ball.
Another aspect of golf that is important to most golfers is the appearance of golf equipment. Golf tends to be a stylish form of recreation in which appearance and social interaction are important. Most golfers enjoy socializing with other golfers before and after a round of golf. This socializing may take place in a country club, restaurant, or bar where it would be inappropriate to wear sporting equipment. For this reason, golf clothing must be adaptable to different environments and the golfer must be able to remove golf equipment easily. The sport belts in McManus and Sicotti et al. do not meet this need. These belts would not be suitable for use in most social situations and most of the equipment holders disclosed in the above-cited references cannot be easily removed as they require the user to remove a belt from the user's clothes.